Blood Trails
by greeneyes84
Summary: Bodies are piling up in Chicago all drained of blood. Chicago PD, the FBI and the BAU are baffled. One lone ME is hell bent on solving this crime. With the help of an elite investigation team they will they be able to? But following the blood trail could prove more dangerous than he thought. Will he be able to keep his feelings in check about his new partner? Will he survive?
1. Chapter 1

**Hey everyone! I had no plans to start a new fic until Well I'll be Damned was finished but this one would not let up. I only have this one chapter done so far since I want to finish WIBD first so I can concentrate on this one so there is no update schedule not that I had ever had one.**

**Okay so this one is a little different and will be a lot darker. There is some technical jargon in there and I'm not expert, most of my stuff I got from shows like Criminal minds and CSI. If I have something wrote wrong or you know it's wrong then let me know. I have great pre reader that will be helping me with the medical stuff so my apologies if shit doesn't sound right. I'm still getting into it.**

**Again SM owns the characters not me. This story will be very different and OOC so without further ado I give you Blood Trails. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 1-**

The phone was ringing, why was the phone ringing? I just went to bed. I rolled over and saw it was after three in the morning. Okay so I had been asleep for a while, sure as hell didn't feel like it as I groaned and picked up the cordless.

"Masen" I said, my voice still thick with sleep and the person on the other end told me what they had to

"Okay, yes I got it, be there in 30" I finished and hung up the phone

I sighed wearily and got ready to leave my apartment. I turned on the Keurig while I got dressed and put some coffee in a travel mug. I was definitely going to need it. I grabbed my keys, jacket and cane and locked up.

I live in Chicago and even it was going for four am, there was still a fair bit of traffic but I knew all the shortcuts having grown up here and managed to make it to my destination in just under twenty minutes.

"Masen" I heard someone yell as I made my way to the scene, my left leg dragging slightly behind me and feeling rather sore. Thank god I had my cane.

"Mike, watcha got for me?" I asked as we shook hands and walked toward the taped off area. Mike and I grew up together, he was a detective with the Chicago PD and I was they're medical examiner. I had wanted to be a detective as well but my bum leg screwed that up.

"Wish to hell I knew Ed" he sighed

"Just tell me it's not what I think it is" he said while he lit up a cigarette and I coughed as the acrid smell hit my nostrils

"That shit will kill ya, ya know" I shoved him a bit pointing to the cancer stick between his lips and I chuckled when he flipped me off

"Fuck you Masen. I'd rather this kill me than that" he scoffed as he pointed to the body and I saw my assistant Ben Cheney was already at the scene

The crime scene was located in an alley between the buildings that made up the factory and lying face down was a body. I walked closer and nodded to Ben as I got down next to the body.

"Jason O'Connell, 45 years of age. He was the night time security guard and when he didn't come home yesterday his wife got worried. She said she called his boss and they said that everything was fine at his last check in which was about an hour before his shift ended which was around seven am yesterday morning. When he still didn't come home she called his boss again. The guard on duty found his body here about an hour ago" Mike explained as I took the victim's body temp and checked the body over in the position he was in

"CSI team been here yet?" I asked

"Nah, should be shortly though, they said one team was investigating a drive by on the Westside" he explained

"That's unusual" Ben commented and I nodded in agreement

"Any word on what caused it?" I asked while I took a liver temperature and Ben took the vic's fingerprints. It was usually the CSI team that did it but we sometimes shared the work

"I don't give a rat's ass who did it. More than likely some drug deal gone wrong. Just tell me this isn't like the others" he huffed

officer make his way towards us and I heard him tell Mike that the CSI team was here

I told the team the specifics and then I watched as they moved the body around. Suddenly the sky opened up and it started to pour. I knew what that would mean; the body would need to be wrapped up and brought to the lab to investigate before the rain washed all evidence away.

"Well fuck" I heard Mike curse

"Come on guys wrap it up quick we gotta get the body outta here. Lisa, Jack, get all the pics you can and Johnny I want you to follow Masen back to his office to collect any evidence still on the body" I heard Leslie who was the CSI team's leader bark

Johnny nodded to me and Ben and I helped him load the body into the van.

"Ben, you and Johnny take the body back and get it set up, I'll meet ya there" I told him and both guys nodded and got in the van and I watched as they drove off

"Letting the rookie do the work there Eddie" Tyler scoffed

He was Mike's partner and it was no lie that we didn't like each other as Mike and I had been friends since we were kids and even attended the academy together and Mike often came to me for advice about a case. Tyler hated it and would rib me every chance he got. Before I could tell him to shove it up his ass Mike beat me to it yelling

"Tyler, how about you be a real detective and go see the vic's wife. Let her know we found her husband and we'll need her soon to identify the body. Say a couple of hours Ed?" he asked and I smirked at Tyler watching him huff and walk away. I told Mike that yeah I should be done in a couple of hours and that I just needed to make a quick stop before going to the lab.

"Leg pain again?" he asked softly knowing that I hated anyone to know when it was bothering me

"Yeah, doc said the nerves are inflamed and will cause pain from time to time" I explained while absently rubbing my thigh

"Well we have been flat out the last several weeks, maybe you need a break" he offered and I gave him a hard glare

"Mike, you know that neither one of us can walk away from this" I told him

"Yeah I know, just promise me that when this is done you will take some time off" he asked

"This body may not be like the others at all but yeah I will if you promise to take some time off too" I offered knowing that he wouldn't make the promise, he loved his job and he would never take time off unless he was forced too

"Yeah whatever. Go get what ya need and then get to work Eddie" he said flipping me off

"Later Mikey" I chuckled knowing the reaction I'd get and I wasn't disappointed as he growled and yelled

"Don't call me Mikey! You know how much I hate that"

"Yeah just about as much as I hate being called Eddie" I laughed as I got into my car and made my way to the pharmacy

After getting my prescription I popped a couple of pills, swallowing them with a mouthful of coffee and I prayed that the stronger dose the doctor gave me would help. I hated taking meds but the nerve pain in my leg could sometimes render me immobile and I needed to be able to move right now.

I drove to my lab which was located in an old colonial style building that had once belonged to a wealthy cotton farmer way back when and he moved his family here when the civil war broke out. The man had lost his fortune during the stock market crash back in the 30's and the house remained unused until the city decided to renovate it and move some of the overstuffed city offices to this building. City records were now held in the dome located on the roof and a reception area was located as soon as you walked in. My office and lab was in the basement and I often referred to it as something out of a horror movie but I loved it and it was quiet or it had been three months ago.

I made my way in and found Ben was the only one there. The body was stripped down with a sheet covering his torso waiting for me.

"Hey Ben, Johnny finished did he?" I asked knowing the answer but I had to make sure

"Yeah about 15 minutes ago. I did an initial check and took some hair and nail samples" Ben told me

"Got a blood sample sent to tox?" I asked and he nodded

"Have you checked over the body?" I continued and hoped that Ben could tell me that this wasn't like the other bodies

"I checked but didn't see anything boss but well you may want to take a look at this" he said as he motioned me closer

I watched as he took a scalpel and cut a line down the vein of his chest where the Y incision would be as to not mutilate the body and I sighed. No blood came out, which wasn't entirely odd for someone who had been dead for over 12 hours but I could see that there was no blood surrounding the tissue of the incision.

"Damn, please tell me there aren't any marks on the body" I sighed

"I couldn't see any so far but I'm still checking" Ben said and I nodded

I kept working and wasn't surprised when Mike walked into my office 2 hours later.

"Yo Ed, Jason's wife is here to identify the body what can ya tell me?" he asked and I looked at him shaking my head knowing that he would understand

"Nooooo" he said a little angry

"Yeah Mike, I'm sorry but it's the same as the others. His body is completely drained of blood, there's no finger prints on the body and well look here" I said beckoning him closer as I rolled the body to it side and lifted his hair a little to expose the gash in his neck. It was higher than the other bodies but you could clearly see the bite marks that ripped the flesh wide open and this time there was two puncture marks in the vic's wrist.

"Fuck me. What the hell do we have here Ed?" Mike spat

"I have no idea. This is the sixth one in three months, I think it's time to call in the Feds and the BAU before more bodies start to pile up" I said as we both walked to my office and looked at the picture surrounding my walls of the other five victims and I felt a shiver run down my spine as I looked at the brutal images on my wall and I was hoping that we found the cocksucker before he struck again.

"**Crouches in the corner biting my nails". Okay so what did you think? Hate it? Love it? Let me know! Thanks for reading. Oh and recommendations, Drotuno has a new one out called Masen Manor, you need to read this. Only 1 chapter so far and it's awesome. Look it up!**

**See ya next time**

**Greeneyes84**


	2. Chapter 2

**Umm Wow! I can't thank you guys enough! I'm overwhelmed by the amount of people who favorited this and are following it already.**

**I wanna thank my new Beta Tammy, you rock as well as my pre-readers, you ladies rock. Thanks again.**

**So just fyi, I'm no expert on medical stuff or what actually occurs during an investigation. I didn't want to get too technical so a lot of the lingo is things I picked up from CSI and Criminal Minds. If you want accuracy I suggest not reading this, it more than likely won't be but I'm gonna try my best.**

**Again I don't own these characters, SM does but mine will not be cannon. So here's chapter 2, see ya at the bottom! **

**Oh and this is rated M for sexual content and language. If you're under 18 don't read it.**

**Chapter 2**

"_Edward, sweetheart, put your seatbelt on," my mother scolded, and I rolled my eyes. _

_We were heading out of town to the family cabin for a weekend, and I really wanted to be back home, playing soccer with Mike and the guys_

"_Yes, Mom," I pouted, hating the way the fabric felt against my neck but buckled it quickly as my father shot me a hard look; it wasn't wise to piss off Edward Masen Senior._

_We had just driven on the highway when I heard the screeching of tires, only to see a huge pickup truck barreling our way. There were shouts, screams, and the feeling of being thrown only to bring up solid. I felt the sickening crunch of my leg being crushed against the door and the seat, and then the last thing I saw before my vision went black was the bloody face of my mom as she reached for me._

I woke with a start and panted as I looked frantically around me. I then sighed in relief as I saw it was my room. The first time I had that nightmare was fifteen years ago, and I woke up in a hospital room covered in wires and a cast on my leg with a doctor telling me that both my parents were dead.

I groaned as I looked at the clock. It was shortly after two in the afternoon. All I wanted to do was go back to sleep, but I told Mike I would be over to his office around five in case the feds had any questions. The FBI and the BAU aka the Behavioral Analysis Unit was supposed to arrive around four, and Mike wanted me to meet them, since I was really good at reading people.

I hadn't gotten back home until well after nine this morning, collapsing in bed and still in the clothes I left in.

My leg was killing me. So after popping a couple of painkillers, I took a nice, long, hot shower, hoping that the hot water and steam would relax my muscles and clear the fog from my head. All I could see was that accident and my mother's bloody face.

It had been a terrible accident, and even fifteen years later, I don't remember everything, and no one ever found out how it happened. The driver of the other vehicle had been sober, and all he said was that something just hit his truck from the side and he lost control. Nothing was ever proven differently, and no one saw anything. So the matter was settled out of court as a freak accident.

It was the accident that led me to work with law enforcement. Mike and I had wanted to be police officers since we were kids, and we were training for the academy when the accident happened. The nerve damage in my leg wouldn't allow me to finish the training, but I was front row centre as Mike graduated from the Academy, and again, when he made detective just a few years later.

I decided that I could still help and became a Medical examiner. With Mike's detective skills and my medical knowledge, we were a deadly team. But this new series of killings had left us both confused and more than a little frustrated.

I made my way toward the kitchen in need of coffee, more than a few donuts, and stale muffins in the cop shop break room that Mike had brought to my office. I made a cup of coffee and saw that there was messages on my machine, so I picked up the mail and went through that while the messages played through.

"Hi, Eddie, it's Jessica. I'll be in town next week, and I would love to get together for a coffee or dinner, maybe see what's up. Call me," came that sickly sweet voice that made me shiver.

"Not with my worst enemy's dick," I thought.

Damn, Mike, he wanted to do tequila shots, and in my drunken state, I joined Jessica in her hotel room. I remember waking up with a massive hangover and my hand on the hardest tits known to man. I have no idea what we did, but as I tried to sneak out, Jessica caught me and wouldn't let me leave until she got my number. I deleted the message and waited for the next one to play.

"Hey, big boy, it's Tanya. Give me a call sometime," purred the voice, and I cursed. Fucking Tanya! She broke my heart when I found out she only wanted my money ,and I left her ass in the dirt. But she still called every six months, hoping to get me back. Not fucking likely, and I hit the delete button hard and sighed as the last message played.

"Hey, Edward, it's Lauren, the temp from the police station. We met a few weeks ago. I hope you don't mind, but I got your number from the police files, and I hope you like the present I got you." Who the fuck was Lauren and what present?

I ran to my mailbox outside and brought the little box back in while the message played on. She was talking about my eyes and how she thought I was so gorgeous and something about being meant to be. I spat out my coffee as I opened the box to find a pair of black lacy underwear, and by the smell, they were used. Gross! I threw the box and all in the trash and deleted the message. I needed to change my number and maybe my address, because clearly, this girl had stalker issues. I made a mental note to talk to Mike.

I spent the rest of the afternoon going over the files again and eating the shortbread cookies that Mrs. Cope, my neighbour, made for me. She was a sweet old lady who knew my parents and acted like my grandmother, and she lived just next door. She would make sure my place was clean when I wasn't home and that I always ate well. Since I had a terrible sweet tooth, that also included her fuckawesome cookies.

Just as I was leaving my house, my phone buzzed with a text message. _"Feds wanted to visit the crime scene. I sent Tyler to meet them, so they won't be here until 6 or so" _

"_**No prob! I need to talk to ya anyways, so I'll pick up some pizza and come on in" **_I texted back.

"_Gino's?" _ came his reply.

"_**Where the fuck else am I gonna get pizza dumbass." **_ Gino's was the best, and we only ever ordered from there. I knew once I called the order in that it would be done by the time I got there.

Mike didn't text me back. He just sent me a picture of his ass with his middle finger in between his ass cheeks, and I nearly threw up.

"_Aww, dude, don't show me your first love." _ I chuckled as I sent it. He was going to flip.

I wasn't disappointed when my phone buzzed with his reply. _**"Fuck you, Masen! Just get here with that damn pizza. You know what I want?**_

"_Duh, we've ordered the same shit every time for the past twelve years," I responded and was once again awarded with a picture of him flipping me off. I just laughed as I pocketed my phone and left to go to the police station._

"Tanya called you? What the fuck, man! Can't that skank get a clue?" Mike scoffed. He hated Tanya for what she did and in no uncertain terms told her what he thought of her as he threw her ass in jail when we caught her in my house. She broke in and stripped off while lying on my bed naked. She hadn't expected me to come home with someone, and I nearly pissed myself laughing when he arrested her ass for breaking and entering and indecent exposure.

"Apparently not! Oh, by the way, that temp you had a few weeks ago got my number from the files and left me a message and a pair of her panties at my house," I told him and waited for his reaction

"Get the fuck out!" he yelled with a mouthful of pizza, and I wiped off my face as a piece of sausage hit my cheek.

"Mike, you ass, chew your goddamn food, you animal. I know for a fact your mother raised you better than that," I scolded.

"Fuck you, Masen. Now go on," he urged.

"Not much to tell. I heard the message, and when I saw what was in the box, I threw the things away. I'm gonna change my number. If it wouldn't break Mrs. Cope's heart, I'd move too," I sighed. "Just keep her away from me if she comes back here. I really don't want to have to get a restraining order against one of your workers."

"Was that the pretty blonde one?" Mike asked.

"How the fuck should I know? I never speak to anyone but you, that fucker Tyler, and Chief Banner," I stated.

"Whatever. I'll take care of it, no worries. The Chief would spaz if you had to take out a restraining order. Oh, damn, come on. We gotta clean this up and get ready. The Feds and that will be here in a few minutes," Mike stated, and I nodded as we packed up the leftover pizza which I told him to bring home to Claire, his somewhat girlfriend. She was a friend and currently living with him while her apartment was fumigated. That was a year ago, and she hasn't moved out. Mike says they're just friends, but I highly doubted it, especially when he would come to work with these cheesy ass grins plastered on his face. I'd poke fun and ask, "How was she?" He would flip me off and smile and then clear his throat and change the subject. Yeah, they were "Friends" HA!

We were all gathered around as the chief talked about the case and any leads they had, which were none. Then I watched as the behavioural analysis unit repeated it all again and gave us a preliminary profile based on the crime scene, but they made it clear that it was very preliminary, and that they would get back to us when they had more info.

Three weeks went by, and we were dealing with eight more bodies. The FBI, with the help of the BAU, thought maybe we were dealing with a schizophrenic who was obsessed with blood. I remembered from some classes that I took that it was called Renfield syndrome, but I didn't remember much else.

There were a few leads. One was a patient that had escaped from the local mental hospital who exhibited the symptoms of Renfield syndrome and had been diagnosed with schizophrenia. But she kept taking her medication, and the FBI didn't find any evidence proving otherwise.

Then they decided to try a different angle and that maybe the unsub or unknown subject was into satanic worship when several of the victims had been found plastered to a wall upside down with their arms to the side. It appeared to be an inverted cross, but I thought it was bullshit. After three weeks, I could see that everyone was getting frustrated.

"What's going on?" I asked Mike as we gathered around yet again.

"Don't know. New profile maybe," Mike shrugged.

"Oh, for fuck sakes! How many goddamn profiles will they make before we catch this fucker?" I huffed, and Mike raised an eyebrow at me. It was highly unusual for me to lose my cool, but three weeks of strangers tramping through my office, more bodies than should have been normal, terrible coffee, and very little sleep made Eddie a cranky boy.

"Yo, listen up," Chief Banner yelled, getting our attention.

"The FBI and the BAU have something to say, so pay attention, kay?" he said and left the floor to the feds.

"Thank you, Chief. As most of you know, it's been three weeks, and we haven't had any luck finding the unsub. This is highly unusual, and while we do intend to keep looking, we have asked for some outside help. Your government has brought in an elite team of investigators who have tremendous success in apprehending international terrorists. They specialize in the more unusual cases, as I'm sure you can all agree that this is definitely unusual," the leader of the BAU stated. Then I watched bug eyed as six of the most beautiful people came through the door. I mean, I wasn't gay, not that there is anything wrong with that, but there were three men in the group who were stunning. But the women, my God, how the hell would we be able to work around 'em?

"Officers, this is C core. They are here to help, so please answer any questions they may have and maybe we can stop this fucker before he kills again," the chief stated. There were murmurs of agreement while most stared slack jawed at the group in front of us.

The leader of the group appeared to be a man of maybe thirty-five years of age. He was about my height with blonde hair and a kind face. He spoke softly but with authority, and I could tell the rest of the group with him respected him and headed his every word. Behind the man who introduced himself as Carlisle Cullen was a stunning woman. She was about average height and appeared to be around his age. Now I was no genius when it came to describing things. If something looked green then it was green, not sage or emerald or any of that shit, but this woman had caramel colored hair with hints of gold ,and she kind of reminded me of my mom which caused my heart to ache just a little. She stepped closer to the leader, and I was certain they were together as well as the rest of the group.

Standing at the back was a huge man. Damn! The guy could have given the Hulk a run for his money. He had dark brown hair and a friendly smile. Next to him stood a stunning blonde. She was tall, had legs that went on for days, and a rack you could bounce tennis balls off of, but her face was cold and she screamed "Fuck off". Bitch queen was someone I would be staying away from.

Next to them was another, what appeared to be, couple. Again, another blonde, but this time it was guy. He was tall, lean, and his face was puckered like he sucked on a lemon, but I could see his eyes travel over the crowd that was present. He looked dangerous, but the little one next to him was anything but. I swear if Tinkerbelle was real and had black hair, this little girl was it. I had to shake my head against thoughts of fairy wings and pixie dust. Good god was she tiny, and my eyes bugged out as she looked directly at me with a knowing look, her smile wide and kinda scary. Her partner or whatever lanky blonde was, got her attention, but I watched as she nodded and then shot me a wink. What the Fuck? Was she hitting on me?

I was flattered. I mean she was beautiful, but she wasn't my type. Plus, she freaked me the fuck out. I don't think Mr. Lanky would appreciate me around his woman. I didn't know for sure if they were together, but it seemed like they were all coupled off.

"This is Esme. She's our liaison. You can go to her if you have any questions," the one named Carlisle said. Oh, right, I was supposed to be paying attention.

He introduced baby Hulk as Emmett and their weapons specialist while bitch queen was named Rosalie and an expert in car models and the team's lead for taking care of bombs. Why the fuck we would need that when the perp was some psycho killing people and draining them of their blood was beyond me. Mr. Lanky was an expert negotiator and technical expert named Jasper, and Tinkerbelle was the team's lead on linguistics, symbolism, and ancient rituals. Her name was Alice.

Again, I wondered why the fuck we needed all this. A weapons specialist and maybe a negotiator I could get, but how the hell would a bomb expert and a bloody linguistics expert gonna help catch a killer.

I heard Mike mutter, "This is bullshit," under his breath, and I agreed with him. But I saw baby hulk shoot us a dirty look. There was no way he heard that. My mind must have been playing tricks.

Old school names apparently, not that I was one to talk. I mean, who the fuck uses Edward nowadays? I hated my full name. Edward Anthony Masen made me sound like a goddamn lawyer, but my dad wanted to keep the name going. All first born sons were named Edward, so I tried not to grumble.

Carlisle went on to explain that he was the team leader, and the group's medical officer. But, apparently, there was one member of the group missing. Their lead expert in symbols and a highly regarded medical examiner was still at the scene. "Mr. Masen, I believe Ms. Cullen will be at your office later on, if that is okay with you?" Carlisle said to me, and I just nodded.

I was used to dealing with MEs from other states. I wasn't looking forward to someone else scrutinizing my work, but if it helped then I would suck it up.

The captain dismissed us, and I nodded to Mike as I left the station and headed to my office to make sure that my notes were in order and the place at least looked presentable. As I left, I saw Tinkerbelle staring at me, and then she winked again. Seriously? Like what the hell?

I was in my office, looking over all the notes from the case and the pictures that were taken of the victims. I sat there, willing for something to jump out at me, but it wasn't working. I was so wrapped up in thought that I fell out of my chair when I heard someone shout my name from out in the lab.

I picked myself off the floor, grabbed my cane, and made my way out of the office only to bang into a tray of medical tools as I took in the beauty at my door. Holy Shit! She was...I mean….damn! I had no words. She was not what I was expecting at all. I figured she would be older and looking more like a college professor, but she was standing there in a black suit. The jacket was unbuttoned revealing a white blouse with a few of the top buttons undone, showing off just a hint of cleavage. I was trying very hard to keep my eyes on her face. She was stunning with her gorgeous dark eyes, dark hair, red pouty lips, and what looked like soft skin. Good, God, who knew a woman in suit was so hot! I mean, I had seen women in pant suits before, but it was always a form fitting jacket, colored shirt, and a skirt or pants and jacket with some brightly colored shirt under it. But she was wearing the same sort of suit that I had in my closet, and by God, I would give them all to her as long as she wore it like the one she had on.

"Dr. Masen, Dr. Masen," she repeated, and I shook my head, forgetting that I had to speak.

"My apologies. You must be Ms. Cullen," I said as I shook her hand, and I gasped at the coolness of her skin.

"Yes, I'm Dr. Isabella Cullen, but please call me Bella. So, Doctor, I was wondering if you had some time to show me what you have so far?" she asked, and I nodded dumbly at the sound of her voice. It sounded like silk, if silk had a sound. It was low, husky, and I felt myself harden just by listening to her.

"Yes, Dr. Cull...I mean Bella, right this way," I said, motioning for her to go ahead of me while I tried to adjust myself and take a deep breath before joining her.

She was seriously trying to kill me. We had been going over the files on the murders as well as the notes I made on each of the victims, and she has removed her jacket some time ago and now the blouse was gone. I gulped as I watched it slide slowly down her arms as she gracefully draped it over her jacket that was currently on my chair. Underneath the blouse was a tank top, it was white, just like her blouse, and very thin. She has stated that she found it warm but there was no evidence of sweat on her brow, and her nipples were quite visible through her top. It took all I had to not throw her over my desk and have my way with her.

In just two short hours, this woman had me hooked. She was beyond beautiful. She was intelligent, gorgeous, sexy, brilliant, sexy, stubborn, oh, and did I mention sexy? She was also pissing me off. She would point out an error in my notes such as the time the body was found and the temperature of the body we had taken. I explained to her how the surrounding temperature might affect the victim, but she would counter point with the estimated time of death versus the fact the victim may have been running from the attacker and therefore raise the body temperature.

All of this went on while she was standing over me with her cleavage poking out. She wasn't wearing a bra, and it would take so little for me to dart my tongue out and taste her sweet skin. She needed to go soon before I lost all control.

"Well, I think that's enough for tonight," I stated as I yawed, making it appear as if I was tired when I was anything but. I really wanted to go to bed, but only if she was there with me, preferably with her legs wrapped around me. She frustrated me beyond belief, but I wanted her in ways I couldn't describe. If I didn't get her out of my office soon, I was going to push her against the wall and take her, hard.

"Yes, you may be right. I should be getting back to my group, and you can fix up your notes. I suggest looking at the victims again and see what you missed," she stated as she threw on her blouse and jacket again. My eyes narrowed at the mention of me missing something.

"Yes, well, I'll be sure to do this, while you get some beauty sleep," I scoffed.

"Thanks for the suggestion, but I will sleep much better once you find your mistakes, so we can figure out what the murderer is after," she said.

"There is no mistake," I huffed and felt my blood pressure heighten as my face flamed in ire.

"Well, you don't see it now, but trust me, it's there," she stated as she walked towards the door.

"Oh, bite me," I spat in anger and watched as she stood up completely straight with her back to me. It seemed as if she actually shivered. Then she turned around with a devilish smirk on her face. My breath caught at the feral look in her eyes which were darker than before.

"Mmm, are you offering, Dr. Masen?" she purred, and I stammered, trying to find something clever to say, but apparently, this woman had reduced me to a mute. "No? Pity. Something tells me you would be delicious," she purred again, and then she did the unthinkable. She walked across the room, and I couldn't tear my eyes from her swaying hips. She then pressed herself against me, so that we were chest to chest. I'm sure she could feel my heart hammering through my shirt. She then leaned in close and dragged her nose up my neck, only to follow the same path with her tongue. Then she gave a little nip on my ear, and I moaned loudly.

"Mmm, just as I thought. You are delicious," she said seductively.

"Goodnight, Dr. Masen. I'm looking forward to working with you," she purred once more and then left my office.

I waited to hear the door close. As soon as I heard the familiar click, I sank to the floor.

What the fuck was that? Better yet, what the fuck was I doing? I had to work with the woman, and I nearly jumped her in my office. Yes, she licked me, but still, I mean we had to work together. I didn't think that the Chief would be appreciate a sexual harassment suit on their hands, because I couldn't keep mine to myself.

I took a deep breath and then picked myself off the floor and sat to my desk to look over my notes again, like Bella suggested. Fifteen minutes later, I was smacking myself in the head. I just couldn't believe that I let her get to me. There's was nothing wrong with my notes, so she could just blow me. Of course, just the thought of her beautiful red lips anywhere near my cock was causing me to become uncomfortable again. I groaned and decided that was enough for tonight, so I left my office.

I couldn't sleep. My dreams were plagued with images of her. I kept dreaming about her face, her voice, the way her skin looked, and that damn lick she gave me in my office.

Of course, my dreams changed and were back in the office, only this time when she licked me, I grabbed her roughly and slammed her into the wall. She immediately grabbed my shirt, and her lips crashed roughly into mine as I hitched her leg around my waist and grinded my painful erection into her. In my dream, she moaned loudly as I tore her shirt open and ravaged her breasts with my tongue. Just as she started to get on her knees, I woke up panting and harder than hell. "What the fuck was that?" I asked myself in the dark room as I tried to calm my breathing down. But I sucked in a sharp breath when I saw Bella at the foot of my bed.

I reached for the lamp, but as light filled the room, there was no one there, no Bella, nothing, just the emptiness of my room. I sighed heavily and threw myself back to the mattress. She was driving me mad, and I only just met her today.

How the hell was I going to be able to work with this woman when I couldn't get my mind out of the gutter? Even in my dreams she was there. I was going to have to talk to her, tell her that what happened in my office was a mistake, and that I think it would best for the case if we just forgot that it happened. Yes, that would be the best thing to do!

With my decision in place, I decided to try and get some more sleep. But as I looked down at the tent in my boxers, I figured a cold shower would be better. I would get rid of my erection, cool down, and then talk to Bella, I mean Dr. Cullen, tomorrow.

But as I let the cold water freeze my skin, I thought back to the feel of her lips pressed against me. I was so fucked!

"**Hides behind a chair" Okay how was that for a second chapter? I loved writing the meeting. I was going to leave it at when she walked in but a pre-reader suggested something more intense so this is what I came up with so let me know what you thought.**

**I'm out, be back soon and thank again for reading!**

**Greeneyes84**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey y'all remember me? Sorry this fic has been MIA I wanted to get Well I'll be Damned done first so I could concentrate on this one! I won't keep ya too long since I know you are all waiting on this and I just wanted to say thanks for staying with me for this one.**

**Okay so a little more thanks goes to all those who have favorited, followed and reviewed, you all rock and are so awesome.**

**I hope this chapter is what you all are waiting for and a special thanks to MrsEdwardCullenP for taking up the task of editing this, god love her cotton socks. Go check her out on Ffn. I also wanted to thanks Oona4 and JWilliams who I bounce ideas off at work for pre-reading, loves ya to bits I do.**

**Okay enough outta me, I know you've been waiting so have at it and remember I don't own it, SM does.**

**Chapter 3-The Writing is on the Wall**

I didn't get much sleep after my cold shower. All I kept seeing every time I closed my eyes was Bella's face, her eyes, her lips and what happened in my office. Was it all a dream?

Nah! I mean I could still feel her breath on my neck and her tongue…'stop don't go there Masen I told to myself.

I finally gave up on sleeping and got out of bed around five; took a long shower and made some really strong coffee and decided to head to the physiotherapist's office for an overdue appointment.

I should have called ahead but I knew that they would get me in. I had been going there ever since I got out of the hospital after the accident and I truly hoped that one day I would be able to walk again without the use of drugs or that stupid cane.

I grabbed my now lukewarm coffee and headed into the building only to groan at the sight of the receptionist, Tia. She was twenty years old and a big time flirt. I hated it, but unfortunately, I had to be nice. I plastered a fake smile on my face and walked up to the counter.

"Hey Tia, any way I could sneak in this morning?" I asked her, trying to choke back a cough caused by the stench of her perfume. Jesus, what did she do, bathe in it? Good God!

"Good morning Dr. Masen, hmm, I might be able to squeeze you in, but you've got to do me a favor," she purred licking her lips and I sighed.

I was about to tell her to forget it but then I heard a voice shout my name, and I smiled as I turned around to see Carmen, my physiotherapist and close family friend.

"Edward!" she shouted and I opened my arms wide as she crashed into my chest. She hugged me tightly and I sighed at the familiarity of it. She pulled back, smiled and then smacked me hard across the back of my head.

"Jeeze, what the hell was that for?" I asked as I rubbed the sore spot on my head.

"For missing your last eight appointments and dinner last month," she huffed as she placed her hands on her hips and gave me the bitch brow. She may have been a tiny thing but she was super scary when she wanted to be.

"I'm sorry Carm, I've been so busy with a specific case," I started, but she put her hand out to silence me.

"Yes, yes, I'm well aware with the case you're working on, but that's still no excuse to miss your therapy. Edward sweetheart, I promised your parents years ago that I would take care of ya. Now get your butt in that room; it's time to work out," she ordered and I nodded.

Two hours later I was sore all over my body and on my way to the station. The closer I got, the more I thought about last night. I was hoping that Carlisle and his weird special team were already gone out searching for clues or at the very least, Bella, I mean Ms. Cullen was gone. I don't think I could look at her the same after last night. Maybe the best thing to do was pretend that it never happened- that I should just walk in and treat her like every other faceless M.E.

With my new firm decision in place, I walked in and let out a sigh of relief when I didn't see tink, ice queen or baby hulk lurking around. Even more when I didn't see _her_ either.

"Where you been?" Mike asked making me jump out of my skin. "Whoa, sorry bud, didn't mean to scare ya," he apologized.

"No it's okay. I was just thinking. Sorry I'm late, I had physio this morning," I replied while I rubbed my leg. It was aching and I needed to take some meds soon but not before I got the skinny on what I'd missed and where a certain dark haired vixen that I wanted nothing to do with might be.

"No prob, so the chief decided…." Mike started but stopped mid-sentence. I watched as his jaw dropped and when I looked around, all my of thoughts about ignoring Bella were shot to hell.

I don't think I'd ever seen anything so graceful; it was as if she was gliding across the floor. She was wearing a short and very tight skirt with a tight top and damn. She looked like a teenagers' wet dream of a teacher and I suddenly wanted detention very bad. Good god, I needed to stop thinking like that or maybe I just needed to get laid.

I watched as she walked behind Carlisle into one of the conference rooms and she didn't even spare me a glance. Maybe last night actually didn't happen. Perfect, at least now I could concentrate on the case and not the way her lips felt on my skin.

_Stop it Masen._

"Damn! She can spank me with a ruler any day" Mike said as he let out a low whistle and I had this overwhelming urge to beat the shit out of him.

_What the hell?_

"Yeah, I guess. I mean if you into that kinda of thing" I faked boredom.

"Are you serious, I mean blondie and the little raven haired one are hot, don't get me wrong but that chocolate haired beauty is a fine piece of ass with a capital F," he exclaimed and licked his lips.

"Oh please, you've already got _one _ woman that you can't handle. Leave her alone," I stated and he shrugged.

"Whatever. Anyways you better get in there, the chief was asking for you. When I didn't see you, I assumed you were in physio. I know the leg has been bad lately, so I told him so. He said that when you got in, to meet him at the conference room to go over the notes that you and choc- I mean Ms. Swan- talked about last night," he told me and I paled.

Last night. Maybe it actually happened. Fuck.

"You okay Ed?" Mike asked I nodded telling him that it was just the pain. I needed to take some stuff for the pain before I went in. I took the pill and another cup of coffee before joining them in the room. I took a deep breath and walked in, hoping like hell that I didn't embarrass myself by getting the mother of all hard ons and someone to see it.

"Ah, there you are Dr. Masen; Ms. Cullen was just going over her notes that she made from yours last night. Care to shed some insight in what you think?" he asked and I cleared my throat.

"Well Chief as I stated before, I believe that we are dealing with a deranged man. He's unskilled and obsessed with blood. The puncture marks on the victims as well as evidence of saliva indicate that he did indeed bite them, but the killer's DNA wasn't catalogued in any known database and there weren't any fingerprints found at the scene or weapons. One of the victims was found upside down with a pentagram drawn in blood. The lab results came back and it was written in the vic's own blood. Ms. Swan and I were going over our notes and while I firmly believe that the temperature readings I did are conclusive and accurate, she pointed out that due to climate and the fact these victims could have been running from their assailant, it could mean that the body temps may have been slightly higher or lower," I stated and fought the urge to roll my eyes at the smug look on Bella's face.

"Well what the hell does that mean?" Chief banner yelled.

"It means that the time of death may be slightly off but only by a few minutes. These victims died at the times that Dr. Masen stated, give or take five minutes" Bella said and I saw the chief smile. I was surprised he didn't pant.

"Yes well, very good. Great work," Banner said. I rolled my eyes and watched as he left the office with Carlisle in tow; the two of them chatting about something. I sat down and rubbed my leg, thinking it was going to be a long day when I heard the sound of metal scratching the floor.

I looked up to see Bella sitting there with her legs crossed. I tried not to concentrate on the creamy skin of her thigh, how high the skirt had risen or how her shirt was incredibly tight. I looked into her eyes and they were darker today than yesterday reminding me of how dark they were last night which I still believed was a dream.

"Ms. Cullen, what can I do for you?" I asked, trying to make my voice not squeak like a teenager going through puberty.

"Nothing. I'm just taking a break," she said in a nonchalant way. I wasn't buying it, so I let it go.

"Alright, well I'm gonna get another cup of coffee and I thought it might be good to head off to some of the crime scenes again, fresh eyes and all that," I suggested and she nodded but her eyes narrowed as I hobbled out the door.

She didn't ask questions even though she did seem upset. I didn't know why, she saw me hobble last evening in my office. Well I didn't hobble so much nor using the cane,but after physio it was a must.

She followed me out the door and said she would meet me in the parking garage. I made my way over to the coffee machine.

I was filling up my travel mug again when I heard someone shout my name and I turned around to see who it was and almost fell over.

There was Tanya with cuffs on her wrists and a police issue jumpsuit on. I held back a chuckle as she screamed my name.

"Edward Anthony Masen, you gotta be able to do something," she cried as a female officer dragged her through the door that led to the holding cells.

I shook my head and I heard a chuckle from next to me only to find Mike laughing his ass off.

"What she do?" I asked him and started laughing.

"Indecent exposure, public nudity, defacing public property, trespassing and vandalism," he stated and my jaw dropped.

"WHAT? Are you serious?" I laughed.

"Yeah I gotta a call about three hours ago from a woman who stated that she saw a couple, in her words, '_getting fresh on a bench just behind the old courthouse_'. I told the woman that we can't really investigate people for public displays of affection. Get this, the woman huffs, calls me an idiot and yells into the phone _'Sex my boy, I'm talking about two people going at it like jack rabbits'_So I try not to laugh because she started ranting on and on and how she could see 'em from her window and wondered how the hell two people could do that. Anyways I cut her off and thanked after I got the exact location, knowing full well where it was, but I needed it for the report. Chief called me in so I sent a couple of the rookies to check it out. An hour later I hear this ear piercing scream, seriously my ears were bleeding. I look up and there's Tanya with one of the officers t-shirts on and she was with some skinny dude with his head shaved and a whole lot of piercings. Of course when I realized she was the one from the phone call I lost it. I fell outta my chair and let the rookies have at it. They brought all those charges up on her and there's photos to prove what they were doing. They were really going at it like rabbits because when the officers arrived they were still connected. Apparently, the dude hada piercing on his junk and somehow it got caught in her well. A trip to the emergency room happened and then when they were released they were thrown to the holding cells. I'm tellin ya man she's been screaming since she got in here. They had her in for questioning since the guy she was with was only seventeen. His parents were mortified and that tramp swears that he said he was twenty six. It was awesome though and the rookies are quite proud of themselves. She kept asking for you though man and I told her that she would never get near you again. Can you believe her?" he ranted and I shook my head sadly.

Tanya never cared for me; just what my name could do for her and the money I received when my parents died. She knew I was wealthy and she took advantage of it.

"Unbelievable, remind me to send those officers a fruit basket," I chuckled and Mike nodded as we shared a fist bump.

" I gotta head out, going to take Ms. Cullen to the crime scenes, see if it will help us figure this thing out and catch the bastard," I told him and Mike waved me off.

I turned around to wave back when I saw him look around and start to hump the air and wave his hand back and forth. I flipped him off and walked out the door.

I met Bella in the parking garage where she was standing next to a wall and my mind immediately went in the gutter. I thought about pressing my body against hers and trapping her there while my tongue did illegal things to her neck and ears. I thought about how it would feel to have her wrap her legs around me while I pounded...Jesus I had to get a grip on reality here.

"My car is this way," I said signaling for her to follow me but she shook her head and I raised an eyebrow.

"I am not riding in your car. It's probably some antique horror show from the 80's that used to be black but now's it more grey with seats that don't move and shakes when it hits a certain speed," she said degradedly. I saw red.

"I'll have you know that my car is of the highest quality thank you very much," I sneered and her lip quirked. Bitch!

"Oh really, what kinda of car is it?" she asked while she glanced at her nails

"It's a Volvo, newest model and it's silver just FYI," I told her, quite satisfied to see her look of surprise but it only lasted a moment before she put her game face on.

"Fine but I think you'll prefer my car," she stated and motioned for me to follow her and like a dumb fuck, I did. I gasped when she pointed her car. Staring at me was my own personal dream car. A hunter green Aston Martin. It had to be a new model and I slowly walked over to the car, touching the hood reverently. I noticed that the windows were tinted and I groaned at how shiny and fast it looked.

Bella told me to go ahead and get in and I groaned again at the shiny, soft tan interior. I was checking out the stereo when Bella opened the passenger door.

"Mmm, I take it we're taking my car," she giggled and I nodded like an idiot. "Well if you're done drooling, do you think we could get going?" she said, her voice sounding amused.

"Well get in the car then," I said irritated. Her attitude was really pissing me off. I never wanted to smack a woman as much as I wanted her in all my life.

She walked around the car and I had to make sure not to drool at the sight of her legs, especially as she folded herself into the driver's seat and I nearly moaned as the car purred and saw her changing gears. I don't know what turned me on more, the sight of her driving or holding the gear shift and imagining it was my cock.

_I really need to get laid._

I was about to tell her how to get there when I noticed that we were on our way to the first crime scene. It had happened in the Millennium Park. Lots of foot traffic, day and night and it was a bitch to make sure that the evidence hadn't been tampered with.

The victim was found about 10 miles off the path. We were sure he was followed and had run from his assailant. There were definitely signs of a struggle and drag marks on the ground that went further into the woods. Whoever the perp was, he was a strong S.O.B since the first vic had his arms broke in several places; his leg was practically hanging by a thread not to mention that he had his head torn off.

Then there was the one strung up on the wall. It had to take a strong man or group to hoist him up there and hold him while he found something to hold him with. Of course we didn't find any other symbols at the other crime scenes, but Ms. Cullen was talking about how there must be other signs or symbols, that a maniac such as our unsub wouldn't have just put a symbol at one crime scene.

"What the heck was up with that pentagram anyways? You're saying that our murderer is in some sort of cult? That he worships Satan?" I asked, trying not to look at her creamy legs in that damn skirt.

"Bloody misconception. You're a smart man, surely you know that the pentagram is not the sign of the devil don't you?" she asked in a manner that made me feel like I was a kid who just got scolded by the teacher.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Look there it is," I said pointing to the park as we pulled into the lot. She parked in a reserved spot; why there was one at a public park I had no idea, but the spot was close to the entrance of the park and would allow us to move about a little more easily. I really wasn't looking forward to traipsing around the forest while my leg was throbbing, but I would suck it up if it meant we it lead us somewhere.

"The chances are slim that we'll find anything, the first victim died four months ago, whatever trace was there is long since washed away," I yelled out as Bella rushed on ahead of me. How the hell she knew where she was going was beyond me.

I saw her slow down a little and wait for me to catch up. We didn't say anything to each other for the rest of the walk. Once we got to the spot that the body had been found, I leaned against a tree and popped an anti-inflammatory using my own saliva to swallow it down.

"You okay?" she asked softly and I closed my eyes for a second trying to fight the sharp pain that was pulsing throughout my leg. Damn nerve damage.

"Yeah, I'll be fine," I assured came over and stood next to me; her face softer than before.

"What happened?" she asked as she motioned towards my leg. I sighed as I struggled with my memories and the decision to tell her.

I didn't want to relieve it, I planned to tell her that it was nerve damage caused by an old football accident but one look into her eyes, those deep dark mesmerizing eyes, I caved and started spilling my guts to a woman I hardly knew. I told her everything, the accident, losing my parents, the surgeries, physio and how the nerve damage sometimes causes me severe pain.

She listened intently and she looked so sad to hear about the loss of my parents, but rather angry at hearing me describe the surgeries, the pain and what I went through after the accident. It was so confusing; she didn't know me. Why the hell would she be angry? Sympathy and sometimes pity, I was used to, people feeling sorry for me; sure but angry, definitely not.

I cleared my throat to put the topic to rest and proceeded to the area where the body was found. Well hobbled over and then glanced around to the surrounding areas, remembering how the dogs scoured the woods and how I practically tripped over the head as I marched around in the dark.

"So this is where the body was found?" Bella said as she crouched down in the clearing where we found the body. The grass was just starting to grow back since the murder happened. There was so much traffic around this area that I was surprised that anything could grow back.

"Yeah, a dog walker on the trails found the body. His dog picked up the scent and took off up here. The walker found the body and called the police. When we got here we searched the area and I nearly tripped over the head which was found about 100 feet that way," I told her pointing to the other end of the wooded area where the head was found.

"Hmm, so 10 miles off the beaten path, there is still evidence of drag marks through the trees. Can I see the photos again?" she asked and I pulled out the camera. Usually it was all kept in a folder but folders got lost and the pictures could be ruined so I kept em all in a digital camera.

She took the camera and started flicking through the photographs while I leaned back against the tree and waited for the drugs to kick in, while I tried unsuccessfully not to watch her. She was mumbling to herself and looking around the field while she studied the pictures, no doubt trying to visualize what we saw that night. I could see her looking in the direction where the body was but it seemed like she was looking beyond that.

I hobbled over and looked in the direction that she was but I didn't see anything. She glanced at me but I don't think she really saw me and then went back to looking at that same spot again. What the hell was she looking at? There was nothing there except dirt, trees, trees and more trees.

"Okay you're freaking me out here. What in god's name are you looking at?" I all but snapped. Her stillness and just staring at nothing was putting me on edge.

She smirked at me and pointed to the edge of the woods, where the head of the body would have been and again I didn't see a damn thing.

"Yeah, ummm, okay," I spat

"You don't see it?" she asked and I sighed as I shook my head no.

"There beyond the trees, there's a an opening. Looks like a cave, the killer could have hidden there or put something in there. It was a common practice for certain religious groups to store things in caves or draw images on the wall. Cavemen for instance, did it all the time. The ancient Egyptians had a symbol for everything. The Aztecs, the Mayans, even in remote areas of the amazon, they have found drawings and things stored in caves," she stated.

How the hell could she see a cave? My vision is pretty good, not 100% and I occasionally wear glasses when my head starts to ache but I could not see a frigging cave and no one mentioned seeing one or being in one during the investigation. Hell I had walked the crime scene and this field at least a hundred times and in no way, shape or form had I seen a cave.

She started to walk quickly towards it while I struggled to keep up. I nearly tripped over a fallen log and got slapped in the face with a few branches as we made our way through the field and the brush.

"Well I'll be damned," I gasped as we came to the opening of a huge cave. I looked back to the field and noticed that it was pretty well hidden; almost impossible to see it. How she did I have no idea.

I rubbed my leg to get the feeling of pins and needles out of it, brushed off the leaves and twigs on my pants and shook my hair of any debris as well while wiping the sweat off my brow. Bella on the other hand was a picture of perfection. Not a hair out of place and there weren't any leaves or dirt on her face or clothes. What the hell?

"In here," she motioned as she went inside the mouth of the cave. I followed reluctantly and didn't see anything. I stood close to the entrance where there was still light coming in but only darkness lay before me.

I couldn't see Bella, hell I couldn't see the inside of the cave. I flicked out my iphone and turned on the flashlight app, thanking god for technology. I entered the darkness and it was so dark that only a few feet could be seen with each step even with the flashlight.

"Ms. Swan. BELLA!" I hollered into the dark but I didn't hear a response. She walked in here without a flashlight and I worried that she may have fallen or maybe there was a huge hole in the ground. What if she was hurt? Or worse dead?

I shuffled in the dark and realized that I had lost reception on my phone. Just fucking great!

I started to move around in a circle to see if it would come back but I got nothing. Suddenly, I heard some rocks being moved and what sounded like breathing coming from my left. I turned around and saw red eyes staring at me and as I raised the flashlight towards that area I screamed.

**How was that? Worth the wait? I hope so and let me know. Okay so again I gotta thank MrsEdwardCullenP for getting this out so quick, woman you are magic. So any mistakes are mine since I don't know how to leave stuff alone! LOL!**

**So in case you are wondering, I get a lot of inspiration from things like Criminal Minds, CSI and NCIS and for those that remember, Crossing Jordan. I can't promise it's gonna be completely accurate but I'm gonna try so bear with me. **

**Chapter 4 is in progress and I hope to have it up soon. Thanks again for reading and sticking with this!**

**Greeneyes84**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey y'all long time no see! Ya still with me? Sorry this took so long, RL issues, writer's block and both my beta and I were having computer issues. **

**Okay not gonna keep ya long, just want to thank those who pre-read this in the early stages and of course I gotta thank, shag that, bow down to my wonderful beta MrsEdwardCullenP who wades through my crazy shit and makes sense out of all my ideas and tells me when something is not really working. You rock girl, like hard and I loves ya for helping me with this.**

**Okay I'm done have at it and remember I don't own these characters, SM does, all hail SM, HAIL! See ya at the bottom!**

**Chapter 4-The Writing is on the Wall**

"_**I couldn't see Bella, hell I couldn't see the inside of the cave. I flicked out my iphone and turned on the flashlight app, thank god for technology. I entered the darkness and it was so dark that only a few feet could be seen with each step even with the flashlight.**_

"_**Ms. Swan. BELLA!" I hollered into the dark but I didn't hear a response. She walked in here without a flashlight and I worried that she may have fallen or maybe there was a huge hole in the ground. What if she was hurt? Or worse dead?**_

_**I shuffled in the dark and realized that I had lost reception on my phone. Just fucking great!**_

_**I started to move around in a circle to see if it would come back but I got nothing and then I heard some rocks being moved and what sounded like breathing coming from my left. I turned around and saw what looked like red eyes staring at me and as I raised the flashlight towards that area I screamed."**_

For a second all I saw was a pair of glowing red eyes and suddenly a hand grabbed my arm; I fell down and screamed bloody murder.

"Dr. Masen, Dr. Masen! Edward," I heard a voice get louder and I shone my flashlight and saw Dr. Cullen's face. She looked normal and I found myself looking for red eyes, but there was nothing there.

"Jesus Bella, you scared the hell out of me," I huffed and I tried to calm my racing heart. Jesus that was scary shit.

"Hmm, scared of the dark are we?" She chuckled and I resisted the urge to flip her off.

"Not at all, but I do get a little wary in dark caves where I can't see anything. How the hell were you able to move around in there?" I asked her as we made our way back to the opening of the cave so I could damn well see what I was doing. First thing was to discreetly check that I didn't piss my pants and to wipe the dirt off my hands.

She held out her phone and showed me the flashlight app, same as mine. I didn't see any other light coming from another direction and when I told her so, she just shrugged her shoulders. I asked her about the red eyes and her reply was to just shake her head.

I was losing my mind.

"Forget it, did you find anything?" I asked and she smiled as she motioned for me to follow her. I tried, but kept tripping up as I could barely see anything more than two feet in front of me.

She took my hand in hers and I inhaled sharply as this electric shock tore its way up my arm. I froze and looked to her to see if she felt anything but she gave me no sign that she felt it. I was losing it. Maybe the accident had caused some sort of brain damage and it was only now that I was feeling it.

We walked for a little bit and then we came to an abrupt stop and there was a hiss and a flash. I looked to see that she had lighted a flare and a bright red glow filled the area and I gasped. The cave was way bigger than I thought and I noticed that things could hide in here and never be found.

I turned towards a wall and it was covered in various drawings. Some were definitely from teens that had stumbled on the cave and just left their tags and stupid messages there. Who the hell cared who T.L was and the fact that he or she thought P.W was so hot. There were song lyrics wrote here and there; I recognized some of them and there were drawings. What year they were from I wasn't sure. Some were artistic and some looked like they were drawn from children. I couldn't help though but gasp when my eyes fell on the one drawing that was on the cleanest part of the wall. It was pretty obvious that is was written in blood, but I would take a sample just to be sure. It was crude, faint and written almost as if the one who drew it had shaky hands. The lines went up and down, no fluidity to them at all but it was very clear what it was, the symbol for infinity. I came across the symbol a fair bit in my studies.

"It's the symbol for infinity" Dr. Cullen started and I nodded.

"Yeah I know. I came across it a lot in college, usually associated with some mathematical equation; not something I ever really needed but it helped. I know that it the infinite symbol was first catalogued by the pre-Socratic Greek philosopher Anaximander, but I think that other cultures adopted the symbol giving it their own meaning? Like immortality for instance," I hedged, not really sure about the whole immortality thing.

"Sort of. Infinite's meaning is limitless or endless in space, extent, or size; impossible to measure or calculate. The symbol is geared towards math but modern times misinterpret it with immortality; the never ending notion whereas it should be just a mathematical sign," she explained and I nodded.

We took many photos of the symbol, the area surrounding the cave and I also took a sample from the wall with the evidence bag I had the smarts to pack. We made our way out of the cave and back to the car but not before I snapped some more shots of the entrance and where it was located in relevance to the crime scene.

"So where's the second crime scene?" Bella asked as she drove us away from the park. I pulled up the notes as I told her that the victim was found in one of Chicago's warehouse districts down on the south side, fairly close to the last victim. He was a known drug dealer and while no one on the force was surprised that he had been killed, seeing as drug dealers pop up dead often;- sad I know, but it happens.- It was the way he died and how he was found that had us all on edge and definitely thinking we had a serial killer.

The victim's name was Maurice or mouse as most knew him as. He was a small guy, like a mouse really according to his mug shots. When he was found, his legs and arms had been torn off and he was drained like the others. What was weird was that we found fingerprints around the neck, chest and back. He was bruised and the markings were made from the victim's own arms and legs. The killer had beaten him with his own limbs and then drained him of his blood.

We contacted some local doctors who suggested the theory that it might have been someone who had a blood obsession and surely suffering a mental illness like schizophrenia or perhaps a multiple personality. Based on what we had at the time, our trails had led us to a man named Laurent.

We received reports of a homeless guy down on Third Street who kept claiming that the reaper was here and that everyone was going to die before he got what he wanted. That blood would be spilt and that he was the messenger. We brought him in for questioning since his DNA showed up at the scene and when we got there he was covered in blood.

When the blood was tested, we found out that it wasn't his or our victims. He had gotten into a fight with another homeless man at a shelter over a sandwich and the shelter confirmed the story. We let him go but he was put under twenty four hour psychiatric evaluation. I heard that he was quite comfortable in the local psych ward at the hospital being treated for multiple personality disorder brought on by PTSD. He had been a soldier and saw some terrible things overseas. Luckily doctors were able to find his family and he was getting help in order to recover.

I told her where we should head to next and just like the first time, she seemed to know exactly where she was going. It was a relief not to have to explain how to get there, but kind of unnerving at the same time. I mean how the hell would she know her way around Chicago? Hell people who have been here their whole lives didn't know their way around. I do and Mike does but we ran the streets and Mike is a cop. We would bike around town playing cops and robbers for god's sakes. It was just a little weird that a complete stranger would show up and just instinctively know where to go.

We pulled into an empty parking lot and I instantly was taken back to that night. As I got out of the car everything felt and smelt the same. It was cold, damp and once again the hair on the back of my neck stood. Being on this case for so long, I should have been used of having the feeling of being watched. However I couldn't. It was as if I was in the middle of something great and yet so terrifying.

We made our way through the empty parking lot and I cut the Crime Scene tape off the door so we could enter the building. The body was found in a room just off the entryway. The building had been a doctor's office once upon a time and then it became a storage facility for a local processing plant and if I am not mistaken it used to be a flower shop. Nowadays it was a place for vagrants and dealers to meet up. When we showed up that night I was expecting a lot of people to be there- seeing as the place was a hot spot- but there was no one, lots in the parking lot but not a soul inside. The body, well what was left of it anyway, was pretty easy to find as it was near the door. There was some blood on the wall, no doubt from the victim as he was being beaten.

His legs and arms were found on the other side of the room discarded as if they were trash. The smelt of blood and cleaner still hung in the air, even after all these months. The scene was sealed off, but vagrants still managed to find a way in as was evident by the trash in the corners, the blankets on the floor, and old take out boxes on a makeshift table.

I saw Bella scrunching up her nose at the offending smell of blood, cleaner and human waste. I mentally chuckled as that would take some getting used to for her. I was accustomed to it but years of working with the Police department and being a medical examiner; well just say that very few things bother me anymore. That and I had a professor in college that on the first day of classes he brought in a cadaver, made the Y incision, then fully opened the body by removing the thorax and made us look inside and examine the organs. If you didn't throw up or leave the room you were golden. I unfortunately puked within 5 minutes of entering the room. It reminded me too much of the hospital after my accident. The smell was the same and I was always reminded of that horrible night and the months that followed.

I thought for sure I was going to be dropped from the program but after meeting with my advisor and the head of the department to explain my situation and of course with the support of Carmen, they gave me another shot. I had one more chance to be able to prove myself and I damn well did it over the years. Needless to say that it got a lot easier. I became desensitized to the smell of dead flesh; determination and a shit load of therapy did the magic.

"Can I see the pictures of the crime scene?" Bella asked as she looked around the room, taking me out of my thoughts. I handed her the camera and while she did her thing I popped another anti-inflammatory. My leg was not calming down at all. If this pill didn't work I was going to have to make a quick stop to Carmen's place and see if her husband Eleazar could help me out. He was a medical doctor and had been helping me with the pain and inflammation for of them had taken care of me in after my parents died and if it hadn't been them, I may never have recovered.

I watched Bella as she walked around the room and then glanced at the photos, no doubt trying to get a mental image of what happened that night. I wasn't sure what she was trying to see; I mean I could give her the cave thing, it was off the beaten path and no one knew it was even there but in this case, there was nowhere to hide some sort of sign of symbol.

We went through the whole building and outside too with a fine tooth comb. It has been the second murder and once I discovered that the body had been drained, Mike had the place torn apart looking for evidence. I smirked as I knew her little theory was about to come to an end. The killer was definitely a psycho and there was absolutely no pattern to follow.

"Hmm, so the killer most likely was waiting here when the victim showed up. Maybe it was a surprise attack," she said, and I had a feeling she was talking to herself.

"Which way was the body facing?" she asked and I pointed towards the entryway that led across the corridor where we found an empty room, more like a closet really. "There were some old brooms and mops in there along with a bunch of old dusty shelves that had been dismantled. We took pictures of it but nothing was in there of any value of evidence," I stated. She took off across the hall and flung open the door.

We both glanced inside and just like last time, I saw nothing of importance. There was more garbage now than before but it was expectable since there were people here. There were a lot of flies and I found myself swatting them away; it must have been the bucket with some stagnant water in the bottom that was attracting them.

I pulled away from the door and waited for her to see what I saw, which was nothing. I took the time to check her out. She really was something to look at, with that tantalizing short skirt she had on. Her legs went on for days and my eyes immediately travelled from her dainty little foot, up her shapely calf and her creamy thighs to what I was sure was an awesome ass.

My eyes drifted higher and then bugged out as I saw her looking at me over her shoulder. She had this shit eating grin on her face and I knew I had been busted for checking her out. Come on, how could I not? The woman was sin personified. She was wearing an outfit that would make a priest fall to his knees and renounce his faith. I damn well know I would have.

I would never tell her that so instead I asked her if she saw the sign yet. She shook her head and I told her that there wasn't one. I started walking away when she gasped and immediately went back to her side to see what she found.

"What?" I yelled thinking that it was damn mouse. Weren't most girls scared of mice? Sexist, yeah most likely but all the women in my family and a few girlfriends were terrified of em so…

"I found the symbol," she said with a wide smile long causing me to shake my head in disbelief.

"Impossible, we went through this place. The cave; I'll give ya that but I looked in this closet then just like I did that time and there wasn't any damn symbol then. I don't see one now," I ranted and she glared at me.

"Dr. Masen, you mentioned that you saw some old junk in here. Did anyone think to remove the items in here?" she chastised and I went to explain that we didn't since there wasn't a need but I kept my mouth shut and shook my head.

She moved some of the old shelves that were there and I started to see something. Once the boards were out of the way my jaw dropped. Sure enough there was a sign there and I had no doubt it was written in blood. It was a hideous thing, a circle, in the shape of a snake that was eating its own tail.

"That's just ghastly, what the hell is it?" I asked. It looked like something I'd have seen in the underground nightclubs around here.

"It's a Ouroboros, usually pronounced with a H. It's been seen in a wide range of religions around the world and throughout time. Kinda goes with the infinity symbol, same concept but it does relate to eternity," she explained.

"So what are you saying? That this lunatic thinks he's the path to eternity?" I hinged, not really understanding the whole symbol thing.

"No, not at all but he does seem to have an interest in it," she stated as she grabbed the camera and took some photos. I shook my head, took another swab and then we left to go back to the station. I would have loved to keep going and see what Ms. Smarty pants could find, but the rain was coming down in sheets and I didn't think either of us wanted to be walking around in the rain searching for clues. I felt like freaking Sherlock Holmes or maybe it was Dr. Watson since I seemed to be following Dr. Cullen around.

She dropped me off at the station and after telling Mike goodnight and after I give the Chief a recap of what we found, I left. I planned to just go home, take a long hot shower, take more pills and then get some rest, but my leg would not let up so I swung around and headed towards my second home.

I pulled up at Carmen and Eleazar's driveway and I immediately felt better, the familiar warmth that I was accustomed to

was somewhat healing.

I hadn't even made it to the door when Carmen was out and down the steps surrounding me with her arms. She smelled liked she had being baking and I smiled as I inhaled greedily.

"Edward I'm so glad you're here," she cried happily.

"I just saw you this morning Carm" I chuckled.

"Don't care, I still missed ya, so deal with it" she huffed and I let her lead me inside the house.

"Edward my boy, how are you?" Eleazar asked happily as he gave me a hug and a pat on the back.

"I'm good uncle," I lied; not really wanting to ask him to prescribe more painkillers. He wasn't my uncle, but he and Carmen were such close friends with my folks so, I grew up calling them my uncle and aunt and they loved it. They had a daughter named Irina who was like the annoying little sister I never had whom I loved to death.

"Come on son, let's get something to eat, you hungry?" he asked and I nodded as we made our way to the kitchen. They had a dining room, but we always ate in the kitchen. It was smaller and more intimate and had that homey feel, with the yellow walls, light wood for the cupboards and it always smelled like a bakery, even if she hadn't baked that day.

I sat down and winced as a wave of pain shot up my leg. I tried to hide it as Carmen set down a big bowl of chicken soup in front of me with a bun of fresh homemade bread. I took one sip and I was in heaven.

"Mmm, auntie this is delicious," I said through a mouthful of bread and she and Eleazar laughed as I practically inhaled the meal. She brought over some salad which I ate greedily while they both laughed at me and then Carmen set down the best thing of all. Her coconut cream pie. I swear it could end all the fighting in the world if they just ate a piece. I almost squealed like Irina's daughter Katie does, but manned up and just ate the thing. The groan and moans were entirely involuntary and both Carmen and Eleazar laughed at me.

I thanked them for the delicious meal and then asked about Irina and Katie. Irina had some bad luck a while ago with a boyfriend who stole a bunch of stuff. She had been in a legal battle to get the money he stole from her ever since.

"Oh, she won that case last week," Carmen waved her hand as if the whole thing was a piece of cake.

"Yeah fairly quickly if I so, but then again, Irina is a lawyer and the damn fool had no idea what he was up against." Eleazar laughed.

I almost forgot that Irina was now a lawyer. She had Kate when she was fresh out of high school and managed to go to college and pass the bar. We all helped her with Kate, who was now a gorgeous thirteen year old teenager who I was happy to hear wanted to become a medical examiner like me. I never had any siblings growing up; the closest was Mike and when I came to live here at seventeen, Irina was only fourteen. When she had Kate, I became Uncle Edward and while Irina was studying, I would take Kate to the park and when she was older I took her to the station, where she would play the cop and throw Mike- the thief- in jail. Sometimes even the Chief would let her into his office when his own granddaughter was in. I would take her to my office when I didn't have a body and she would spend some time coloring.

You would think that a child would be scared to death of all that stuff, but Katie loved it and constantly wanted to come to work with me. I ate it up and I loved her like one of my own.

"She ripped him a new one huh?" I chuckled and then winced as my leg flared up again. I saw both Carmen and Eleazar frown.

"Leg acting up again son?" he asked and shook my head.

"Nah. Just over did it. I'm fine I swear," I told them

"Oh sweetie, did I work ya too hard today? I knew I should have taken it a bit easier since you hadn't been in a while," Carmen fretted and I wrapped her in a hug.

"It's okay auntie, I swear I'm fine. I was working a case and trudging back through old crime scenes just irritated it," I told her and she nodded, her eyes a little misty. Damn she was worried now.

"Come on son, let's go and have a look," Eleazar said as he kissed Carmen quickly and took me back to his study.

I sat down on one of the big comfy chairs in his study while my uncle gathered a few things. He grabbed a stool and sat down in front of me and gently lifted my leg. He twisted it around- something I was quite familiar with and then he asked me a few questions. Once that was all done he lifted my pants leg and sighed.

"Some awful heat coming from the leg son, a lot of inflammation I say. Are you taking your anti-inflammatories?" he asked and I nodded. "I think it's time to up the dose. Not to mention the fact that your aunt says you've been neglecting your physiotherapy lately," he added in a stern voice.

"Sorry Uncle El, but this case takes up most of my time and I don't want a stronger dose. I feel like a drug addict already. You increased the dose a year ago; surely my body isn't use to it yet, right?" I whined like a teenager again.

"Edward, what you went through was extremely traumatic and I don't think I need to remind you of the damage it caused. You need to take care of yourself, no case is worth your health son" he said softly and I cleared my throat in fear that I would lose it. "And yes son, our bodies can get used to medication; sometimes quicker that we like. Tell you what," he continued, "you will keep taking your pills religiously for a week and if they don't work right, then we'll increase it a bit and see, okay?"

"Sorry Uncle, I promise to make more effort," I told him..

"I don't want promises son," he said. "I want actions. Please."

"I swear," I said truthfully.

We left the office not long after and as I put my coat on I laughed as Carmen came out with a shopping bag full of things.

"Auntie, what's all this?" I chuckled as she shoved the bag at me and wrapped her arms around me in a hug.

"It's just a few microwavable bowls of the soup you had, a few frozen loaves of bread and the rest of that pie. I also threw in some frozen lasagna and couple of stews. I know you have a crazy schedule and I just want to make sure you are eating well," she said softly and I kissed her forehead. I thanked them both and headed out.

As soon as I got home I put away everything Carmen gave me, ate some more pie, took a shower and went to bed.

Once again my dreams were plagued with Bella, only this time the red eyes were hers.

I woke up with a start and again she was there at the foot of my bed wearing nothing but a white flimsy dress, her hair down, flowing down her shoulders; her lips deep crimson that reminded me of blood. She was like a dark goddess and I found myself drawn to her in ways that I couldn't describe. Why was she here? How did she get in?

_Was this even real?_

"Bella!" I finally managed to breathe, but she just put her finger to her lips and shushed me as she put one leg up on the bed and like a cat she crawled towards me. I swore I heard a purr, but I wasn't sure it was from her or me.

As I was about protest, she straddled me; her heat searing the thin material of my boxers and I moaned at the friction between us.

"Bella, we can't…" I moaned, but she cut me off as she wrapped her arms around me; her tongue doing illegal things to my neck and ear.

"Oh Dr. Masen," she purred and I groaned. I wrapped my arms around her waist and moved us so she was on her back with me hovering over her. I didn't care that she was here, I wanted her and I was going to have her.

I kissed and licked her neck and chest, my hands slowly making their way up her dress and then she flipped us again so she was straddling me; her hot little tongue dragged along my chest and I closed my eyes as she made her way down. I moaned loudly but when I opened my eyes she was gone.

_What the fuck? _

I nearly screamed as I tugged on my hair.

_Was it a dream? _

I looked around for any sign that she was here but found none, save for the huge boner that I was now sporting and was currently throbbing. Damn, that was some dream. I flopped back on the bed and willed myself to calm down. This was the second time it happened and I knew I had to get it together. I had to work with this woman and not have embarrassing sexual fantasies about her. At this rate I wouldn't be able to be around her..

I got up to take a shower to cool off and try to get rid of my problem. As soon as I left the warmth of my bed I shivered. _Odd_. I shrugged and went to the washroom, but not before I caught sight of my curtains: they were flowing from the breeze and I knew I didn't open my window. I walked over to close them and that's when I smelt it: Bella's scent.

_But how?_

**So what did ya think, worth the wait?**

**Chapter 5 is in the works so hopefully I can get that one done quicker so stay with me, they're on the trail now so keep reading to find out where the blood trail ends.**

**I'm out, thanks again for reading and I should have put this in the top but I wanna say thanks to all those who have read it, are following it and those that reviewed, so happy you are loving this so much. Thanks again and see ya soon!**

**Greeneyes84**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5- Tinkerbelle Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest**

**Hey everyone! Miss me? Sorry I've been MIA, I got excuses but I won't go into em, let's just say RL sucks!**

**Anyways here's chapter 5, remember I don't own it, SM does, just playing with em and the reference in the title is inspired from the iconic movie about one flying over a cuckoo's nest. Thought I should get that out. **

**Again I just wanna thank those who are following this, added to their favorites and those that reviewed, means a lot. I get the reviews on my phone but I don't always have time to respond so just know that I appreciate it. And of course huge thanks goes to MrsEdwardCullenP for making sense out of my ramblings and gets my craziness. You're awesome and this fic would suck without you. **

**Okay that's enough from me, read on and see me at the bottom.**

Managing to fall asleep after that was unreal, but I did and I woke up to an extremely rare sight during the fall in Chicago; the sun was actually out. Wow! I stretched and then shook my head as the smell of Bella's perfume still hung in the air.

I had decided that last night was a dream, nothing more, nothing less, just a dream. A fuckawesome dream that is. Dr. Cullen was just another faceless M.E. with whom I would work with, help solve this case and catch a killer. I would not think about her anymore.

"_You tried that yesterday, remember?" _my brain chuckled and I sighed. I could resist her, right?

I After a quick shower and shave, I went to psysio and Carmen was just so happy. I couldn't help but smile at the fact that Irina and Katie were also there to visit. Katie came barreling towards me and I couldn't help but swing her around like I use to when she was little.

"Uncle Eddie, I've missed you," she giggled as I put her back on the ground and squeezed her again.

"I missed you too Katiekins," I said, using the nickname I made up for her when she was still a baby. She smiled and wrapped her arm around me and started telling me all about school, her friends and how she wanted to be like me when she went to college. I puffed out my chest a little in pride. I had heard it already, but to hear it from her made me extremely happy.

Irina smiled as she looked at us and then she walked over and hugged me, kissing my cheek.

"Hey Teddy," she said and I smiled. I hated the nickname and she knew it but it was familiar so I let it go!

"How's it going Rin?" I used her nickname and she scowled. HA! That's for calling me Teddy.

"Great, how's the leg? Mom said it was acting up," her face softened in concern.

"It's fine, now tell me. Did you hand that jacka… I mean jack off his butt?" I asked, trying to watch my language where Katie was concerned.

"Uncle Eddie, I'm 13. Believe me, I've heard worse at school and that guy that momma was seeing was a jackass," Katie huffed and I laughed.

"You know I did. Dumbass didn't pay enough attention. If he had, he would have known I was a lawyer and I would get 'em. Can you believe he tried to say I gave him the money? How he got a hold of my bank info, I'll never know. I called Mikey and he managed to look into it and found out that the jerk was friends with someone at the bank. The footage was there and I had all my bank transactions on file. I never go to the bank directly; everything is always done online. He didn't have access online so he went to the bank and tried to forge my signature. Fucker," she ranted and I smiled. Wait until I tell Mike. He hated the nickname Irina calls him, but she couldn't say Michael when were younger so Mikey stuck.

"How much did he manage to get and did you get it back?" I asked, concerned that it might take her some time to get it all back and I wanted to help just in case.

"Not as much as I thought, but any money he has is now mine and his parents wrote me a big fat check. They we so embarrassed by what their son did. They loved Katie like their own grandchild. His father lashed into him at the hearing; his mother had to be restrained after she slapped him and started to pull him towards the courtroom. I felt bad for them, they were so nice to us and I have no idea where their son even got it from," Irina said as she shook her head.

"No idea?" I hedged. Irina could sniff out a liar a mile away and I told her she should have been a cop but she preferred the legal side of it. I had seen her in the courtroom a few times, she was fantastic. She was lethal.

"I have some. I'll tell you later," she said softly so Katie wouldn't hear and I nodded telling her we should go for coffee, just the two of us.

I gave Irina and Kate another hug, said goodbye and I braced myself for the therapy session I was about to do. "Come on hun, let's get some work done on that leg," Carmen said softly and promised to go a little easier on me than yesterday.

Two hours later I was lying on a bed, with ice packs on my leg after spending twenty minutes with heating pads. Carmen whipped my ass for an hour and then put those damn electrodes on there for fifteen minutes. Those fucking things hurt!

Carmen made sure I took one of the new pills Uncle gave me and then I headed to the office. I was gonna swing by the precinct, but Mike had texted me earlier and told me Tanya was out on bail and that the one who sent me her freaking panties was going to be covering the front desk for the afternoon. I said to hell with that and went to my office. I had some things to clue up and maybe in the peace and quiet I could get some more work done. There were always cases coming in and paperwork had been piling up since this killer came to town, so I decided to get those done, in order to clear my head from our major case. .

I called Mike to let him know I would be in the office for a while and then maybe go to the park to enjoy the sun. I also thanked him for helping my cousin.

"Oh please, she may drive me nuts and be a pain in the ass since she became a lawyer, but you know that I think of her as a little sister. I was only too happy to help put that prick away," he chuckled.

"Busy over there today?" I asked, not really wanting to ask about Bella directly.

"Nah, more or less just catching up on things that have went to the wayside. Sad to say but until this bastard makes another move, its business as usual," he replied and I agreed with him.

We talked for a bit more, and without prompting he told me that the Cullen's would not be in today. Something about working another case during downtime and that they would be back tomorrow. Hmm odd. I figured today would be the perfect day to go to the other crime scenes, it wasn't raining and the rare sunlight might be able to pick up something that we didn't before. I was determined to put this damn symbol trail to rest. What freaking psycho leaves symbols of eternity and shit at a crime scene? I understood up to a point his/hers narcissistic views and the need to taunt us, but that alone was just fucked up.

I sat down to my desk mulling over paperwork and tapping my pen against the table. I had been here for hours and I hadn't gotten a damn thing done. The most I had managed to do was organize my desk and put the files that were done back in the drawer. I couldn't concentrate; all I kept thinking about was the case which just led to my thinking of Bella. I knew her scent; it lingered in my room, on my clothes and even now in my office I could smell her.

How was that even possible?

'Mates,' a small voice echoed in my head.

_Mates? _

Ugh, I have to get out of here. I grabbed my stuff, got in my car and headed to the one place that would clear my head.

Lincoln Park had always been a safe haven for me. Mike and I would come here almost daily every summer, to play ball and swing in nearby Adams Park. Then, we would head down to the rocky shoreline and swim in the water. Not the safest thing to do, but we didn't care. It was also a place that I would I go when I would 'run away from home'. Yeah that usually lasted an afternoon, and then I would get hungry and then return with the tail between my legs.

It was also a place I would find myself hobbling towards after the accident. Somehow in the middle of that park I felt closer to my parents. Maybe it was the never ending sky overhead, or the mist that lingered above the small lake.

Whatever it was, I felt my parents; even now I miss them. I don't think that this feeling will ever go away.

I shook that thought away before I started blubbering like a baby here in the middle of the park. I found a bench and watched as the people milled about. Children ran from others, mothers chased their own kids while babies babbled away in their stroller. Men and women jogged around the trails and dogs played amongst the grass. It was a common sight; one I've seen a million times and I sighed in a mixture of relief and peace as the familiar sights and sounds filled my soul.

I took a walk around the park admiring the changes that had been done to it. Once upon a time there was wooden teeter totters, swings, a rickety old jungle gym; a rusted slide and while I loved the wooden teeter totter, swings, the jungle gym and slide, they were a safety hazard. Even though the city did it's best to maintain the park, sometimes the rides just never got the love they needed so, I made a donation to the city and had everything replaced. Now the park was littered with kids on bright pink and orange slides; a red teeter totter and the swings were now a mixture of thick plastic and rubber. The jungle gym was replaced with a splash pad for the kids for the summer time and a skate park was built nearby. I stood there watching a couple play Frisbee with their dog when suddenly the hair at the back of my head, stood up. I tried to ignore it but the feeling was intense. The same fucking feeling I got when someone is watching you. I turned my head and no one was there.

I shook it off, thinking that the stress was just making me jumpy and went back towards the benches. Seeing they were now occupied, I made my way towards the trees and sat down.

I sat there soaking up the little sun that Chicago was offering for this time of year and thinking about anything besides this case and Dr. Cullen. I also tried to ignore the feeling again, that someone was watching me. The damn case was making me jumpy; lack of sleep and too much coffee were making Eddie a crazy boy.

I took a deep breath and relaxed against the tree as I closed my eyes.

_I found myself on a green field, with ruins. I knew where it was; it was in Armeni; a Minoan cemetery with tombs carved out of rocks. It was located in Rethymno. I had seen many pictures of the sight. I spun around, and marveled the creepy setting. What I wasn't expecting though, was to find a man in his early forties, wearing a chiton and a bay wreath on his head; or maybe it was made out of olive branches. I wasn't sure._

"_Took you long enough," he chuckled and started walking towards me. I think he seemed familiar._

"_Who are you?" I gasped._

_His mustache twitched. "My name is Karolos and I have a very interesting story to tell you…"_

I must have dozed off because the next thing I knew was water being dripped on my face. I opened my eyes and saw it was starting to rain and I'd just made it back to my car before the sky opened up and started to pour.

I sat there wiping the moisture from my face and turned up the heat in the car so I wouldn't get chilled. I relaxed back against the seat of my car after turning the heat on blast to dry my somewhat humid clothes and just closed my eyes. I knew it wouldn't be wise to fall asleep while the car was going but I was enjoying the moment of peace.

I sat there with my eyes closed for just a minute before the sound of someone knocking on my window made me jump. I looked out and saw Tinkerbelle aka Alice standing outside my window with an umbrella. I sat there in disbelief and just waved as my heart calmed down. What the hell was she doing here?

She made some motion with her hand and I just nodded dumbly and then the next thing I knew she was in the passenger seat. "Ms. Cullen." My vocab was awesome. She just sat there staring at me with a blank look on her face and then just as quickly it was gone.

"Good day Dr. Masen," she said, her voice reminding me of bells. She sat there in a beige trench coat and some sort of beret or something, but what was odd were the gloves she had on. They were a tan color and disappeared through the sleeves of her coat.

Who the hell wears gloves in Chicago outside winter?

_Maybe she had Raynaud's disease… _

We both kind of sat there in awkward silence and I had no idea what to say to her. The Cullen's or C Core had been here for a number of weeks now and I only had contact with Bella aside from one brief conversation with the senior Dr. Cullen on the advancements of medicine. He wanted to hear my notes on the case so far and I caught him admiring some of my tools. They were antiques that had been passed on my family. My dad wasn't a doctor but his father, grandfather and great grandfather had been and he gave them to be as a present on my eighteenth birthday. The case included an antique brass bleeder, mini mortar, something used for draining sinuses and abscesses and a bone saw.

Dr. Cullen marveled over the condition they were in which was pristine or at least that was what I had been told. We compared old and new technology tools, took the tapes and left. It had been an odd conversation and I had a feeling this one was about to be the same.

"Ms. Cullen, how can I help you?" I asked, in a feeble attempt to break the silence.

"Please call me Alice. I was just in the neighborhood and saw your car parked here and thought we could chat," she said as her smile got wider and almost crazy like.

"Umm, okay" I said, not really knowing what else to say. I mean why would she be in this neighborhood, much less the park and how the hell did she know what I drove?

"I was wondering if it would be okay if I came with you to look at the next crime scene?" she asked and I could detect a slight bounce to her. I take it back she wasn't a pixie; she was like a damn Chihuahua and I prayed that she didn't piss all over the seat.

"You mean with Dr. Cullen and me?" I hedged, hoping to god she didn't mean just me and her. She seemed okay but there was something about her that had me on edge.

"Oh course silly. Like Bells would ever let me be alone with you," she giggled and my jaw dropped.

What the hell did she mean by that?

Sensing her words she gasped and then started muttering something about being stupid and then smiled at me again and shook her head. I was so close to running away it wasn't even funny.

This woman was certifiable.

"Oh I mean…well it's just that…um, you see…the two of you, and I know she's my sister and all, but well she's…and well you… oh dear! Stupid Alice, I can't believe you just said all that. Shut up!"

Was she talking to me or herself? It was like something out of the Lord of the Rings, like watching Gollum and Sméagol arguing only it was a pixie instead of a hobbit.

"Look Dr. Masen, my sister can be a handful. She likes to hide behind a mask. Just promise me that when the time comes you will be able to handle it," she said sadly. I sat there dumbly.

I turned for a sec to gather my thoughts but when I turned back around, Tinkerbelle was gone and there was no sign she had ever been there. What the hell was that? Better yet, what the hell was she talking about? I was so sick of all this cryptic bullshit. We all hide behide masks. The woman was a pain in the ass for sure and definitely a handful, but I could definitely handle her.

Her sister on the other hand, apparently she took a flying leap over the cuckoo's nest.

I shook my head and snorted at the weird conversation and took off for home. I was tempted to call Mike and see if he wanted to get a beer but I was beat and just wanted to relax. I headed home and was pleased to see that Mrs. Cope had left me more cookies but there was a package on my doorstep. "What now?" I huffed in annoyance.

I grabbed the damn box and went inside hoping to god it wasn't another pair of panties. I slowly opened the box and my eyes bugged out of my head. Staring at me was a teddy bear, red lipstick kisses all over it and a picture of Bella and I by my car. Her face had a black X mark over it and in red letters above me was the word MINE!

The fucking panties would have been much better. Who the hell sent this? This was some scary shit.

Instead of standing there and thinking about who sent this, I bolted out the door and headed right to the police station. I didn't see Mike at his desk so I sat in his chair and waited for him to come back.

"Masen! What are you doing here?" that piss worm Tyler sneered.

"Nun ya," I hummed and the idiot just stood there slack jawed. How the hell did he make it through the academy?

"Nun ya?" he asked.

I couldn't help but smile and spat "As in none of your business."

"Fuck you Masen," he spat and I flipped him off but before he could flip me off as well, the Captain came out of this office. He spied me sitting at Mike's desk and waved.

"Doc, how are ya?" I smiled and told him I was fine, leg was acting up but that I was happy to have a day to get some things done. He didn't need to know I didn't actually do anything.

"Waitin' for Newton?" he asked and I nodded. He nodded back and gave my shoulder a squeeze. We talked for a bit and I couldn't help but smirk as Tyler stood there scowling.

"Crowley, don't you have work to do?" Captain Banner shouted and I thought for sure Tyler pissed himself as he ran off like a little bitch but not before he shot me a sneer over his shoulder. I flipped him off behind Banner's back.

Fucker!

"So how are things going with you and Dr. Cullen?" he asked and I nearly choked on my own spit.

"I'm sorry sir, what?" I sputtered.

"Good god man, I'm talking about the whole crime scene thing. I know you two have been revisiting them. How's that going? Have you found anything new?" he asked, clearly aggravated with having to explain since apparently my brain was currently on vacation.

"Oh, sorry sir," I apologized. "Aside from the symbol and blood we found the other day and then then cave before that, nothing else has come up. Dr. Cullen wasn't available to visit the other crime scenes today," I said trying to keep the disappointment out of my voice.

"Very good. Continue the good work." He gave my shoulder a squeeze, walked off. I heaved a sigh of relief and opened the file that Mike had on his desk. The file was on a drive by that happened a few nights ago. I had seen the body, shot right through the chest, one suspect and I noted that he had a few leads. Knowing Mike, he had gone to the get the suspect and I for one did not pity the poor bastard when he met Mike in interrogation. He was like my brother and would talk to anyone, but get him in an interrogation room and he was intimidating as fuck. I had seen him break gang members in less than fifteen minutes.

"Ed, sup man?" Mike hollered as he took a seat and I shrugged. It wasn't unusual for me to drop by.

"Busy day?" I asked and he nodded and grabbed the file I had, writing some notes.

"Interrogating?" I asked and he nodded.

"Dude, how long have you been in there?" He looked dragged out and really tired.

"What time is it now?" he asked and I glanced at my watch and told him it was close to four pm.

"Hmm, about an hour," he stated

"Oh really, what happened to Mr. I can get a confession in twenty?" I quipped. I couldn't help but rib him about it.

"Fuck you Masen. I had the confession in twenty. It took me damn near forty minutes to get the fucker to stop crying. Fucking junkies. He was coming down from a hit and realized what he did and just lost it. Didn't take much to get a confession, he was practically on his way to us to confess anyways. The victim was his dealer. The shooter couldn't pay, but needed another hit and when the victim wouldn't give it up he shot him," he stated.

"So why do you look like the walking dead?" I asked.

"I fucking hate it when they cry. Yell, scream, curse me to hell, or deny it, that shit gets my adrenaline going and I love it, but when they get all weepy and pussy like, ugh I can't stand that shit. This is why I won't question women. No offense to 'em but I can't deal with the crying. I got a woman at home. That's enough," he huffed and I laughed.

"So listen, I've got an issue. Another box showed up at my place." I told him what it contained and he sat there mulling it over while I grabbed the water he had stashed in a drawer and took one of the pain killers my uncle gave me.

"That's crazy shit man," he stated and I sat there bugged eye. That's all he had to say. What the fuck?

"Mike, what the hell?" I spat and he held his hands up laughing.

"I'm kidding. Don't worry about it, I'll look into it." He chuckled and I flipped him off.

"What if they try to hurt Bel...I mean Dr. Cullen?" I asked. I was more concerned for her then me at the moment.

"I'll put a detail on her. it might be nothing, but I'll do it nonetheless. Even if they do come after her, their chances are slim. I say good luck getting through He Man first," he said and I agreed. He Man, aka Emmett Cullen was the biggest dude I had ever seen and he had some serious muscles to back him up so I doubt that anyone would be crazy to even think of having a chance to get her. It might be wise to tell her what's going on and then suggest she be careful.

Yeah I could do that at least apart from freaking out that something could happen to her.

I decided to call her on the way home and see if she could meet me tomorrow at the office or something and tell her what happened.

There wasn't any answer on her phone so I texted her.

_**Need to discuss something. Can we meet tomorrow? - E**_

I decided to stop by my favorite bistro for a sandwich and maybe a slice of their coconut cream pie before heading home since I had no food in the house. I was waiting in line when I smelt it.

Bella…

I turned around I saw her coming through the door.

"Dr. Masen," she greeted as she walked towards me and I couldn't help but notice the sway of her hips.

"Dr. Cullen, what are you doing here?" I asked, maybe a little too harshly. I watched her eyes narrow and her mouth pull down into a frown. I sighed. She should never look like that; she was too beautiful to frown and I felt terrible that I had made that look appear on her face.

"I do eat Dr. Masen and decided to stop for a bite. Is that a problem for you?" she spat and I hung my head in shame.

"My apologies Dr. Cullen, it's been a long day and I get cranky when I'm tired," I apologized.

"No I'm sorry; I've been having an off day myself as well. I got your text; sorry I was on a phone consulting with another investigation company. What did you need to talk to me about?"

I invited her to join me for dinner and that I would explain it then. I ordered and stood to the side to wait for it and for Bella to order. Once we had our orders we didn't see any tables available so I suggested we head back to my place. I immediately regretted it. I hoped she didn't misinterpret my words. This wasn't a date and I wasn't inviting her back to my place for anything other than talking.

She smirked at me; making my heart fly and we left the bistro. I lead her to my car and told her to follow me and she agreed. I found myself constantly checking the mirror to see if she was still there and willed myself to calm down. This was nothing, just two colleagues getting together to discuss an issue and suggest some safety precautions. That was it, nothing more, nothing less.

"_She's gonna be in your house dude!"_ my mind screamed at me.

**FUCK!**

**Hmm, what kinds of shenanigans will our dear docs get into? Will things heat up? You'll have to wait for the next chapter to find out.**

**See ya soon!**

**Greeneyes84**


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